Personal defense tools, especially those that consumers utilize for home defense, may be classified in two very broad categories: propellant based and non-propellant based personal defense tools. The propellant based tools include weapons, such as handguns, rifles, and shotguns, which use propellants to launch projectiles toward an attacker. Such projectiles are considered lethal, and as such, the propellant based weapons are also considered to be lethal weapons. And in most cases, such weapons require special training and licensure by the state/federal government.
Alternatively, non-propellant based personal defense tools include weapons such as pepper sprays, knives, batons, and electroshock weapons like stun guns. Small, portable, and legal in most states without a license, these home defense weapons can be kept in the bedroom in a nightstand or carried with you in case of an emergency. Unfortunately, although many people prefer the non-lethal personal defense tools given the supposed risks of using and storing propellant based weapons, there is clearly a difference on the effect each these types has on an attacker.
The general belief is that what makes you feel safest is the right solution. However, a more accurate statement is that what provides you the greatest safety in the face of an attacker, within your risk tolerance, is the right solution. User peace of mind during an attack is only one component of the safety aspect of the weapon; the other more important component, however, is the mental effect on the attacker. And in this way, known non-propellant based weapons, which are non-lethal, have greater difficultly in achieving the desired personal defense than do propellant based weapons, i.e., given the attacker's perception of the potential harm that my befall them.
As such, there is a need for new non-propellant personal defense tools that address these concerns, providing increased safety to users that prefer non-lethal weapons.